Foraging
by pomegranate-stars
Summary: "He looked like a drowned rat, Antoinette decided, as the farmer stood sheepishly in front of them, dripping water all over everything."


**Does anyone else love this game, or is it just me? Recently, I've been obsessively playing Harvest Moon: Grand Bazaar, and I've totally fallen in love with it. Anyway, I haven't written anything in a while, and so I decided to write this little drabble to get me back in the swing of things. I mean, really, how is no one noticing me jump randomly into the river all the time and coming out with hunks of gold? :) Anyway, I hope you like it!**

_**Title: Foraging**_

_**Game: Harvest Moon: Grand Bazaar  
**_

_**Pairings: None (Mentions of Lloyd/Sherry, Dirk/Antoinette)  
**_

**_Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon._  
**

* * *

Antoinette stood on the bank of the river, gazing into the river. The water rippled over the rocks, the sun sparkling off its surface. Beneath the crests, Antoinette could see the shadows of fish, darting between each other in simple patterns. Water, she decided, was magical. She glanced sideways at Sherry. The mayor's daughter was also looking into the river, a thoughtful look on her typically open face. Across the way, Antoinette could see Lloyd, dressed in his usual turban ensemble (really, how did he not melt in the summer heat?). The dark-haired businessman was watching Sherry surreptitiously and Antoinette smirked. Really, he was being painfully obvious.

Antoinette returned her gaze to the rippling current. It was quiet and peaceful. A perfect afternoon.

Suddenly, the silence was shattered as a body went barreling past Antoinette and jumped headlong into the river with a splash.

Sherry jumped violently and Antoinette reached out a hand to steady her. "What…" Sherry gasped.

A head broke the surface and Antoinette found herself face to face with the new farm boy, Oliver. He grinned lazily. "Hey, girls!" He glanced behind him. "Lloyd." He waved. The businessman rolled his eyes. Oliver cut through the water and clambered onto the bank, water dripping from his clothes and hair. Sherry put her hand on her heart.

Antoinette glared at him. "Oliver! What on earth are you doing?"

Oliver thought for a moment. "Scavenging." He finally answered. The feather on his hat drooped with the weight of the water. Oliver turned and jumped back into the river, vanishing from view.

Footsteps sounded behind her and the girls turned to find Dirk with a huge grin on his face. Antoinette felt her face heat up. "Dirk!" She snapped. "What is going on?"

The boy shook his head, laughing. "I told Oliver that I spotted something shiny on the bottom of the river. He's been jumping in the water all week and has actually found a ton of cool stuff!"

Oliver's head broke the surface again. "Hey, Dirk!" He waved. "Check it out!" He held up a spiky looking black ball out of the water. "Sea urchin!"

Dirk shot him a thumbs up. "Awesome!"

Oliver got out of the river. "Hey, Antoinette, could you hold this real quick?"

Antoinette wrinkled her nose as Oliver handed her the dripping… thing. He spun on his heel and dove into the water a third time. Antoinette rolled her eyes. "This is ridiculous." She grumbled, waiting for Oliver to surface.

Dirk shrugged. "Hey, it's working. You know, last week he found a hunk of gold? Some old man bought it from him last Saturday for eight thousand G."

Sherry looked surprised. "Really? That's incredible!"

Antoinette smirked. "Maybe we should all start diving into the river."

Dirk and Sherry looked at each other, then at the water. Antoinette sighed and grabbed Dirk by the collar before he could go tearing into the river. "Guys, I was kidding."

Oliver, meanwhile, had come up for air and was treading water. "Nothing." He grumbled.

"Oliver!" Sherry stomped her foot. "Get up here before you catch a cold!"

Oliver raised an eyebrow. "In Summer?"

Dirk laughed. "Get up here, man." Oliver swam to the bank. He looked like a drowned rat, Antoinette decided, as the farmer stood sheepishly in front of them, dripping water all over everything.

Sherry put her hands on her hips, attempting to look threatening, but only managing to look vaguely stern. "Oliver! You're going to jump into that river, and some day you're not going to come up! How are you going to live and farm here if you're dead?"

Oliver looked suitably chastised. "Sorry, Sherry, you're right. I just…"

Dirk suddenly pointed. "Oliver, look!" Something shiny winked up at the group from a little ways down the river.

Dirk and Oliver exchanged a glance. "Race you!" Oliver cried.

The two boys went tearing off and catapulted into the river, whooping loudly. Antoinette rolled her eyes. "Boys." She grumbled. She looked down at the sea urchin in her hand and dropped it onto the grass. "Come on, Sherry, let's go get some tea at the café."

Sherry smiled. "Ok." The girls made their way to the bridge as Oliver and Dirk clambered out of the river, dripping wet and laughing. As they crossed into town, Antoinette listened and heard a faint splash off in the distance. She shook her head, not able to stop the smile from creeping onto her face.

"Freaks."

* * *

**Thank you for reading! Please leave a review, if you're not too busy. :)**

**xoxo**

**Allie  
**


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